The Governor Vessel Is Bilaterally Innervated: A Potential Structural Basis for Superior Gastric Modulation by GV6

Objective This study aimed to neuroanatomically confirm the bilateral innervation of the examined governor vessel (GV)-associated dorsal midline regions and functionally compare the gastric regulatory effects of GV6, BL21, and BL50. Methods A combination of morphological and functional experiments was conducted: (1) an Evans blue (EB) extravasation assay retrograde neural tracing (Alexa Fluor 488/594-conjugated cholera toxin subunit B), and anterograde neural tracing (AAV2/9-hSyn-EYFP/tdTomato) were performed to delineate the innervation pattern of the GV (dorsal midline) at the neuroanatomical level; (2) in vivo electrophysiological recordings were performed to monitor gastric motility changes following electroacupuncture (EA) stimulation at GV6 and the bladder meridian (BL) acupoints (BL21 and BL50); and (3) left celiac–superior mesenteric ganglion complex (GLX) resection was performed to compare the regulatory effects of the GV and BL acupoints (GV6, BL21, and BL50) on gastric function. Results Morphologically, ipsilateral electrical stimulation of the dorsal root or dorsal ramus resulted in extravasation of EB across the dorsal midline. Neuro tracing experiments showed that the GV8 region received convergent sensory afferents from bilateral dorsal root ganglia, whereas the BL47 region received predominantly ipsilateral innervation. Functionally, EA at GV6 produced a greater inhibitory effect on gastric motility than EA at BL21 and BL50 ( P < 0.05). Crucially, following unilateral sympathetic denervation, the inhibitory effect of GV6 was partially preserved, whereas the inhibitory effects at BL21 and BL50 were no longer evident. Conclusion The examined GV-associated dorsal midline regions exhibited bilateral sensory innervation, whereas GV6 produced a greater inhibitory effect on gastric motility than BL21 and BL50. This anatomical organization may contribute to the functional characteristics of the examined GV acupoint.